December seems so far away!

It's been almost a week.

I was going to post something fun--but we're all sort of traumatized here because our Liddy is missing. I haven't seen her since Friday. We've done the usual things--made calls, knocked on doors, announced on the radio, hiked the woods and fields, searched the ditches--but still no sign of our skinny, fierce, funny little huntress.

She's a very committed pet. Her attachment to littlegirl is unwavering--she patiently endured hours of American Girl clothing on her 7 pound frame. My personal favorite has always been the bonnet and the tutu combination. Yes. Little girl is going into high school, but these two really enjoy each other.

Anyway. Feeling a little blue and hoping, hoping, hoping she'll find her way back home.

~L

With Abs.

Or With Abandon. Take your pick.

I can't wait!!!

This is NOT Caesar Romano

(...but he's pretty damn close...)

So the publication date for Trust Me If You Dare is far far away--December 21, 2010. But friends, LISTEN TO ME: I know that's holiday time and you won't be reading much ( other than my holiday book Mistletoe from Carina Press on Dec 6--cross promo FTW!); I know you'll be shopped out and with your family fulfilling DUTY and OBLIGATION and stuffing stockings and making pie, but friends, do not let that stop you from rushing right over to the good folks at Samhain and spending 5 bucks on Romano and Albright: Book II!

It's funny. I promise. And...hot.

Ahem. Here's the blurb.

Hard help can be good to find.

Feisty New Yorker Caesar Romano has a knack for getting into a jam, and this week is no exception. When his pregnancy-hormone-buzzed business partner sweet talks him into working a solo gig for his famous ex, Caesar attracts the worst kind of attention.

It’s only the beginning. Hit on by a lusty German, stalked by the paparazzi, victim of an unexpected airbag attack—and desperate for some part-time help—Ce’s running out of time, staff and patience. But what’s really got him poised to run? A looming brunch with his sexy lover’s esteemed family.

PI Dan Albright is a man of many gifts: investigation, security, sex talk and driving Caesar nuts in and out of the bedroom. Hired to protect an outrageous soap star from a deranged personal assistant, Dan’s got his hands full refereeing rival actors, locating one four-foot-eleven woman…and convincing Ce that he’s playing for keeps.

Hey, nobody ever said taking a relationship to the next level was a waltz in the park.


Warning: This book includes bad driving, a naughty German, dirty words, heated glances, mutual masturbation, oral sex, an evil scout, a memorable ride, and a fabulously affordable tuxedo. May cause unexpected bursts of laughter.

Cover coming soon! I can't wait to see it.

In other news--BigGirl received a nice service award and letter from the President himself (ok yes she's one of a million--but I like to think she's one IN a million). Good job, BigGirl. She's sporting a very nice pin today.

Happy Wednesday!

News

Now that the contract is signed, sealed and Fedexed, I think it's finally time to announce my inclusion in the m/m Holiday anthology at Carina Press. Josh Lanyon, Harper Fox, ZA Maxfield, and moi, LB Gregg.

(INORITE!?)

I'm very excited that my novella will hit the Carina shelves on Dec 6th. Mistletoe (working title) is a short, sweet, contemporary gay romance of unrequited first love and the miracle of second chances. Plus sex.

I'm finishing it now, so shhhhhhh, writer at work.

~LB

Mac

My MacBook died at 1 am Tuesday morning. It's 8 months old. I was literally on the last page of a major chunk of a book due (very) soon--and moments before I prepared to send the file to my beta reading friend, waiting in the wings, my computer screen went black.

Experience tells me that a black screen is not a good thing.

Numbly, I spent two and a half hours staring at the gray screen, then the blue screen, then the gray screen, then the black screen--and then I put my head in my hands and I totally flipped out.

After dying inside, and sleeping restlessly, I stumbled out of bed, drove unbathed, decaffeinated, and scantily clad, to the mall (45 min away). I was a total agitated ass to the good genius at the Apple Store. My apologies, sir. (Also has anyone ever told you that you look exactly like Chris O'Donnell?)

I can't say enough good things about the Apple Store. It's so damn busy, with customers poking and prodding and playing with things. Pressing buttons they probably shouldn't and setting off alarms. In the herding area where those of us with ailing computers waited, there was a sort of optimism I've never encountered with PC at Best Buy or...where ever else I've purchased computers.

Apple was going to fix this.

I waited and texted friends for moral support and I did not tell G (away this week on business).

Today I'd like to thank Anton at the Westfarms Mall Apple Store for:

• A) squeezing me in without an appointment within twenty minutes, even after I was a douche to the Chris O'Donnell man. (I apologized.)
• B) not shitting a brick when I admitted I hadn't backed up my files recently.
• C) not lecturing me about not backing up my files recently.
• D) letting me swear in public while sitting next to that nice family --and also for not noticing that my shirt was in truth a pajama shirt.
• E) getting my WIP and my work files off the computer and onto a flash drive (that you found for me and charged right there in about two shakes of a lamb's tail) moments before my Mac crashed for good as we both looked on. Thank you. Thank you.
• F) installing the new harddrive within two hours. TWO HOURS. Not the three weeks that other store took when this happened to me last time.
• and G) being nice to me when I was having a really bad day.

Thank you, Westfarms Apple Store. I love my Mac.

~LB

Emilie at Gays of Our Lives

Once upon a time, long before she broke her bones in a billion places, there was a red-headed, rose growing, fairy princess from Pennsylvania who traveled by train to the Big Orange to meet her favorite soap stars from Alles Was Zhalt and Verbotene Liebe.

Let's call her Emilie. See Emilie? I see Emilie. (And my new secret gay boyfriend, Hi dollface! Long time no see! )

From Emilie's LJ: I’d made the sign Kris had requested, and an “Ich liebe Lisabea” sign (ed. note because who doesn't love Lisabea or Kris?), in addition to doing some special shopping. I volunteer with a GLBT organization at a local university, and have introduced some of the students to the German soap operas. For the event, I stayed with my aunt and uncle, who live in northern New Jersey.

Narrator: Emilie also spread the AWZ bug to her friends Lisabea and Kris. Don't let her fool you. Anyway, Princess Em arrived in the Big Orange, all a twitter.

From Emilie's LJ:
My impression of the night was "Wow."

It just seems so surreal. Eighty or so soap opera fans packed into the upstairs room of a bar, with tasseled lamps with red light bulbs providing most of the illumination. I found some of the Eskimo people I'd hung out with Thursday night, and we sat near the little stage-type area with the screen for a projector. I called Lisabea around seven, and she said she was right by the door next to a tall blond man. As soon as I headed that way, there was a call to clear a path, and I retreated back to my seat. It was Thore Schölermann and Jo Weil coming in. They're just that hot in person.

B. got Igor's attention, and got a photo of me with him. (ed. note. Em looks fabo here with Igor.) It was all pretty otherworldly at that point. Meanwhile, it seems that Lisabea had been determinedly stalking spoken with Dennis. She saw my nametag, and pulled me up to her at the bar to show me the picture of her and Dennis. (*squee on Lisabea's behalf*) She'd told him that he was her gay boy friend, and she said he didn't contradict her. (ed. note. THIS IS TRUE) Dennis' husband was there. I was so glad on their behalf that they'd gotten the chance to travel together.

Later, Lisabea cornered charmed Dennis again to show him off. I said, "You're such a stalker," but Dennis didn't seem to really mind. He said he'd been stalking Lil. I'm guessing that was for less obsessive reasons. (!?!) I got a cheek kiss and a little conversation myself. He was so gracious and friendly. The Verbotene Liebe people had swept Jo and Thore off into a semi-partitioned section for pictures -- and I'm assuming some drooling over them as well. I tried to get Lisabea to come along so I could point out Thore and give her mini-updates about those stars. She was sticking around where the Alles was zählt folks had been, and said that once she had a boyfriend, she stayed loyal. (Ed. Note: Oh. My. God.) The German actors did the presentation of the award-winning fan videos. The Alles was zählt winner was "The Best We Ever Had."

Emilie with a German

~Actor Thore Schölermann~

Narrator: On the next day, Princess Em went to the Stonewall Inn. She was one of many princesses there, I mean hello, but she was our favorite.

From Emilie's LJ:

There were wonderful discussions about gay visibility on television, what kinds of things the actors enjoyed playing in their roles, coming out stories and love triangles with gay characters. The actors were so articulate and thoughtful, and said some really important things about such topics as how knowing someone gay can change someone's mind if they have only had stereotypes before, and getting to a stage of normalization of gay characters in popular entertainment. It was lovely to see that Scott Evans and Jo Weil really seemed to be hitting it off. Dennis had some awesome things to say on the panels he was on, and the one he moderated. Really, all the actors, and the writer Tom Chroust had such great observations and thoughts about what the characters' presence on television meant now, and their hopes for the future. I thought it was great that Igor and Dennis, and Jo and Thore, said that in playing gay couples, they'd become close friends themselves. In between the sessions, I got an autograph from Igor and an autograph for S. (a college student I call my “secret love child”) from Dennis. I texted S. about getting an autograph for him, and he was really happy.

Narrator: Later that evening, Emilie gathered the most amazing collection of glow sticks imaginable and partied til dawn. Lisabea carefully lost the handmade signs Em so lovingly crafted with glitter and colorful markers and eye of newt by leaving them in the dressing room of the Stonewall and yes, liquor may have been involved, and she's sort of a wicked step-sister at this point, but hey, that's not really part of this story.

From Emilie's LJ:

Sunday at Mustang Harry's: A little crowd of us had gathered, and went upstairs when the restaurant folks were ready for us. The guys came in shortly after. I didn't actually see them come in, but I saw Jo and Thore get on the line to get brunch. I saw Dennis and Brent and Igor, Dennis holding a court of chatting until someone said, "Let him get something to eat."

Lisabea said that when she tried to get the big sparkly signs I'd made that they were locked up in the Stonewall Inn dressing room. (ed. note. Distressingly true.) I got out all the 8 1/2" by 11" paper I had so I could improvise. I kept getting distracted by the conversation, so I was having an awful time spelling "Lisabea." At one point, Igor walked by and looked down at the "Ich liebe" part of the sign. I forgot my own name, never mind Lisabea's. (ed. note: I was like--Emilie! Step away from the markers.) After I finally got the signs done, I saw Lisabea talking to Dennis while he hugged her. I brought them the "Ich liebe Lisabea" sign. "Not that one, the Kris one," Lisabea said.

I expected that Lisabea and Dennis would hold the sign while G. (a fan with a digital camera ) and I took pictures. Somehow I ended up in the picture. (ed.note. Because, damn it, some fairy tales should have a Happy Ending, and Em needed some hot German snuggle love and Dennis G is just the prince to offer that. Yes. I shared the boy friend. The end. No just kidding.)

Dennis said, "Let's make this look good," and put his face against my cheek.

(le sigh)

I found the AWZ folks outside. Dennis got emotional when the Sparkle Sisters presented him with the memory books. I saw someone's book, and my name was in there. They were taking pictures before and after. I brazenly asked if I could be in another picture. "Who do you want the picture with?" someone asked.

"Um..." I said, and promptly ended up in a DeRo sandwich (ed.note: NOM NOM NOM). Afterwards, I floated back upstairs. Somewhere along the line, Lisabea got her picture signed, as she proudly has displayed here. Dennis came back upstairs a bit later. He went around hugging people, including me. Lil started saying that he had to get to a photoshoot, that they were doing a Male Function photoshoot in Times Square, but he was still very busy hugging and talking.

Jo and Thore didn't seem to have quite such a tight deadline, and stayed for a few more minutes, hugging people. Jo gave me a hug. "Thank you," he said.

"Thank you," I replied. I couldn't believe he was saying it to me. The character he plays on Verbotene Liebe, Olli, is incredibly nice. So is Jo. The actors I met were all so gracious. It was an awesome weekend all around.

Narrator: It was, Emilie. Agreed.
THE END

Dear Emilie,

I hope you mend your tattered bones, that you remember that you have friends in the igloo, and that you should keep on keeping on. Thanks for letting me butcher your live journal entries and post photos of you all over my blog while still making your experience at GoOL all about me.

xx's

Lisabea

(and Kris, who is in cahoots.)